# A case of cigar tunneling ?



## jazzboypro (Jul 30, 2012)

Hello all,

A month and a half ago i bought a bundle of 25 Indian Tabac Classic Chief (7.25 x 52). Until yesterday i smoked 5 of them and most had burning issues that could be corrected. I'm no expert but the construction of these cigars is not impressive. Yesterday, i lit up my 6th Indian Tabac and from the start it did not burn well and i was not surprised considering my previous experiences with the first 5 of them. That particular one was burning on the inside but there was no burn line and there was almost no ash build-up....i tried correcting it, cutting it re-light the thing and after about 20 minutes i got pissed off and threw it away and decided that i would not order these again.

Today after getting home from work i lit up a Flor De Oliva (7 x50), this was my 8th Flor De Oliva and all of them were ok without burning issues but the one i had today had the same problem as the Indian Tabac i had yesterday. I was able to fix it and i enjoyed the last third of the cigar.

I believe this kind of burning issue is called "tunneling" yesterday i thought that it was due to poor construction but since it happened again today with a different cigar I'm not so sure anymore. Both cigars came from the same humi. The humi is almost full and sitting at 64 RH

In the two years i've been smoking cigars it is the first time i get this problem. What might be the cause for this and what's the cure ?

Thanks


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## B-daddy (Oct 29, 2012)

Shot in dark #1 - Calibrate your hygrometer. Your rh may be off. 
Shot in dark #2 - Try dryboxing a couple of sticks. Smoke one after one day. The other after two days. 
Shot in dark #3 - You got crazy unlucky and the rest of your sticks will smoke fine.

Were they all maduros? They tend to have a few more burn issues.


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## splattttttt (May 17, 2012)

Can you confirm a sudden rise in humidity where you live? At least within the last several days or so. Not that it makes any difference if the humidor is well sealed.
If not, the wrappers may have absorbed some extra moisture and the fill may have been really dry since before the spike in ambient humidity developed?


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## JoeT (Sep 15, 2012)

Be sure to rotate your ciagrs every couple months or so. The reason could be the top of the cigar is exposed and has more surface area in contact with the humidity. This can cause a unbalanced humidity throughout the cigar which can cause one side to burn faster than another.


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## jazzboypro (Jul 30, 2012)

B-daddy said:


> Shot in dark #1 - Calibrate your hygrometer. Your rh may be off.
> Shot in dark #2 - Try dryboxing a couple of sticks. Smoke one after one day. The other after two days.
> Shot in dark #3 - You got crazy unlucky and the rest of your sticks will smoke fine.
> 
> Were they all maduros? They tend to have a few more burn issues.


Thanks for the suggestions. I actually have to humis one beside the other, both have a hygro of the same model calibrated at the same time. Both hygros indicate the same RH give or take 1RH, i don't think the hygros need calibrating but i'll do it just to make sure.

The Flor De Oliva is a maduro and the Indian Tabac is a colorado. I never noticed more frequent burn issues on maduros but i will pay attention to this.



splattttttt said:


> Can you confirm a sudden rise in humidity where you live? At least within the last several days or so. Not that it makes any difference if the humidor is well sealed.
> If not, the wrappers may have absorbed some extra moisture and the fill may have been really dry since before the spike in ambient humidity developed?


The weather changes a lot around here but it's never been an issue in the past. I am confident that both my humidors seal well.



JoeT said:


> Be sure to rotate your ciagrs every couple months or so. The reason could be the top of the cigar is exposed and has more surface area in contact with the humidity. This can cause a unbalanced humidity throughout the cigar which can cause one side to burn faster than another.


Good point, my last rotation was done about a month ago, maybe i should rotate them again.


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## bryan00989 (Mar 4, 2013)

Every time I left a cigar sitting a little too long I've had them tunnel on me. Not sure if this applies to you or not, could just be smoking them a little slow.


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## Cigar Guru (Dec 22, 2012)

Next time you light a cigar, try this method.

Toast the foot. (Hold the flame so the foot starts to darken but not burn).
After toasting evenly, proceed to lighting the outer edges of the foot. You want a ring of ember around the toasted foot rather that the whole foot being lit.
You are done lighting after this. The first few puffs will have little smoke, but the center will soon catch up, you will then have full smoke output.

Sometimes, the roller will select a binder that is too thick and oily that the filler burns faster than the binder. Lighting this way allows the binder to get a head start.

Also, drawing easier will prevent tunneling.


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## Cigar Guru (Dec 22, 2012)

Also, smoking in high humidity or windy environments creates havoc with our precious sticks. As you smoke/draw, the cigar becomes wetter and wetter.

Which is why some only smoke til the halfway point. Their sticks usually become too soggy to enjoy.

Its just part of the game.


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## jazzboypro (Jul 30, 2012)

bryan00989 said:


> Every time I left a cigar sitting a little too long I've had them tunnel on me. Not sure if this applies to you or not, could just be smoking them a little slow.


Actually, i think i smoke too fast, this should be getting back to normal as the weather improves :biggrin:


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## jazzboypro (Jul 30, 2012)

Cigar Guru said:


> Next time you light a cigar, try this method.
> 
> Toast the foot. (Hold the flame so the foot starts to darken but not burn).
> After toasting evenly, proceed to lighting the outer edges of the foot. You want a ring of ember around the toasted foot rather that the whole foot being lit.
> ...


Sounds like a good advice, will try that.


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## JoeT (Sep 15, 2012)

Cigar Guru said:


> Next time you light a cigar, try this method.
> 
> Toast the foot. (Hold the flame so the foot starts to darken but not burn).
> After toasting evenly, proceed to lighting the outer edges of the foot. You want a ring of ember around the toasted foot rather that the whole foot being lit.
> ...


This is great advice and i always light every cigar like this. The amber will be a nice cone shape if done right. So when u light it the middle should be black and not amber color. After a few puffs u will see the center turn amber. Also smoking fast can cause a hot box and change the flavor drastically. Try to leave some ash on the cigar and take as much time between puffs as u can but keep it from dieing out. The cooler the smoke the better the taste will be for u.


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## beachbum (Apr 12, 2013)

You might be able to correct it by peeling some of the wrapper near the lit end, to assist the burn. Obviously not a long term fix, but if all else fails, you might be able to get away with this, without it unraveling as a final attempt before tossing it. All the advice above is a better start though.


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## jazzboypro (Jul 30, 2012)

beachbum said:


> You might be able to correct it by peeling some of the wrapper near the lit end, to assist the burn. Obviously not a long term fix, but if all else fails, you might be able to get away with this, without it unraveling as a final attempt before tossing it. All the advice above is a better start though.


I finally recalibrate both hygros they were a bit off and the RH was a bit higher than what was indicated. I did a rotation of the cigars and lowered the RH and it is now at 65 RH. I'll wait a bit and try another cigar and see what happens. Thanks for all the help i really appreciate it !!!


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## Cigar Guru (Dec 22, 2012)

jazzboypro said:


> I finally recalibrate both hygros they were a bit off and the RH was a bit higher than what was indicated. I did a rotation of the cigars and lowered the RH and it is now at 65 RH. I'll wait a bit and try another cigar and see what happens. Thanks for all the help i really appreciate it !!!


You may not see the full effect of the change. Cigars tend to adapt slowly with changes. So the Balance in the cigar that you are trying to achieve may not happen for maybe another 4 weeks.


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## Merleos (Apr 23, 2013)

This has been a really informative and helpful thread.


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